INDONESIA - MOROTAI - D'ALOHA AND SOUTHERN ISLANDS - 12 FEBRUARY TO 14 FEBRUARY 2019

I woke and thought 'time to leave Morotai … need to surf BUT firstly I will visit the southern islands'.

I said my goodbyes and caught a share car to D'Aloha Resort near Daruba in the south of Morotai.

I settled into my room and caught up with my friend Norma. In the afternoon, I had a walk along the beach and the nearby town. It was a fun walk along the beach, chatting now and again to a few locals. The walk through the village was great. The people were friendly, ready for a small chat and wanting their photo taken. Two kids followed me for ages, I took their photo and they ran off happy.

Back at the resort, I had dinner on the beach. It was a 3/4 moon. The moonlight was quite pretty reflecting off the water.

Back in my room, I organised onward plane tickets and hotels for my next destinations.

The next day, I did the boat trip to the islands. it was 1 000 000R but worth it. I had the boat for 7 hours and the boat had three motors (always good in case of problems) and a cabin.

Norma was my guide. We had fun sitting on the cabin roof, walking around the islands, wading through the shallow water and being silly.

The first island was small and sandy with no vegetation. Small waves were breaking from all directions either depositing or withdrawing sand. We walked around the island (a couple of minutes) and I had a swim in the clear water.

At Kokoyo Island, I had a snorkel next to the pier. The water was clear and there were massive schools of fish, pretty coral and a sea snake. The fish were so numerous that I couldn't see through them but they parted for and around me as I swam through them. Very magical.

After that, Norma and I walked around part of the island along the shore and through the shallow water.

Dodolo Island was really two islands at high tide connected by a sand spit. We walked around the islands crossing over on the sand spit. The sand was blindingly white. It was so pretty.

There were a number of places to stay on the islands. We had lunch on a cabana in the shade.

The last stop was between two small rock islands in the middle of the ocean. the water was shallow between the two islands and was ideal for snorkelling. There were lots of fish and coral. the visibility was good but it parts the sand movement obscured vision.

It was a great day on the islands. I got back feeling good tired, had a shower and dinner then off to bed.

The next morning, I had my final walk along the beach. I said my goodbyes and drove off to the airport. At the airport, I had problems with the charging of my surfboards but it all sorted out in the end.

SULAWESI, MANADO - BOAT, MALL AND POOL - 17 JULY 2017

We woke, packed a bit, had breakfast, paid the bill ( which took 1/2hour), finished packing, got on the boat, motored to Manado in pretty wild seas, landed at first harbour inside the river, walked a short distance, hailed a taxi and checked into 4 points hotel in Manado... how easy can it get.

At reception, we organized an early check in, transport to the airport tomorrow and a takeaway breakfast.

We showered and I washed my hair (salt water showers in Bunaken). We wandered down to Manado Town Mall which was beside our hotel. We looked at the shops and had lunch and coffee.

Back at the hotel and we hit the roof top infinity pool and bar and enjoyed a few beers until the rain came.

The rest of the afternoon was spent enjoying the room aircon and reading.

In the evening, we wandered back to the mall for dinner. We were going to go for a street wander but it was too wet to walk outside.

SULAWESI, BUNAKEN ISLAND - BOAT, SNORKEL AND TURTLES - 14 JULY 2017

I woke early and wander around the hotel grounds, down to the ocean and had a swim in the pool. All nice, still and quiet.

After breakfast, I was off in a boat for snorkeling. Jacinta hung around the pool. The first snorkel started off with a drop off with okay coral and fish. I had to cross an open area between two reefs. It was like an abyss below me with rays of sunlight adding to the disorientation. When the other reef started to come into view, two large turtles materialized in front of me - awesome.

The second snorkel started in awesome fashion with a sheer drop off wall in much clearer water. There were heaps of fish and okay coral. I drifted with the current for ages. After an hour, I looked up to find that the boat was not longer in sight. A bit of a worry but I figured they would find me when it was time to go. I saw about a 6 turtles this time. I got reasonably close to one but I had to dive pretty deep.

 (vague photo of turtle)

I rested for the afternoon.

Later, Jacinta and I had a few beers before dinner at the hotel bar which had a great view over the ocean to the mainland. We also listen to a local guy sing and play some local songs on his guitar. Nice.

Malaria tablet night.

SULAWESI, BUNAKEN - CROSSES, BOAT TRIP AND ISLAND VILLAGE - 13 JULY 2017

We woke, had breakfast, packed and loaded the car for Manado/Bunekin.

Our first stop was stations of the cross. There was a bit of confusion as Denny thought we meant the cross on the hill. Well, it turned into a great drive. We turned off the main road and were soon going upwards on a massively eroded and loose gravel road. Denny was determined that we would get to the top and I was pretty sure he was going to snap an axle. We got to the top and were rewarded with panoramic views over Manado, the ocean and distant islands. The cross was big and rarely visited by tourists. Wonder why?

Next we stopped  in Manado on a hill opposite the statue of Jesus. It was very impressive. 

We stopped at the first harbour and waited a short time for Captain Ricky and our boat to Bunaken Island. The boat trip was fun even when it began to rain. We got soaked even though we were under cover but were dry by the time we reached Bunaken.

On arrival at Two Fish, we were given a long spiel about the hotel and facilities, then we settled into our rooms and went to the large open dining area for lunch. Everyone was seated at one long table and it was all very quiet and subdued. I found that too hard to handle and started talking to a few people. The food as great.

We swam in the pool and when it cooled down in the afternoon, we went for a walk to and through the village. The village was basically two narrow bricked streets. It was relatively tidy and the houses were varied and mainly single storey, except for the enormous church.

Back to the hotel for dinner and sleep.